The New York Giants had the first potential “reach” of the evening as they grabbed former Miami offensive tackle Ereck Flowers.

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“Reach alert! Reach alert! The Giants, who missed out on Brandon Schreff when he went to the Redskins at No. 5, addressed their glaring need at left tackle by selecting former Miami standout Ereck Flowers. A physical lineman with a lot of upside, Flowers will give the Giants an edge in the trenches they have been missing the last couple seasons. However, he was not projected to go until the high to mid 20’s according to most experts. Maybe the Giants could have traded down and still got their man? Or maybe they could have gotten better value with a defensive lineman like Danny Shelton? Either way, this pick deserves some scrutiny.”- Michael Lombardo

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“The New York Giants were absolutely desperate for some offensive line help, and they could have just landed a cornerstone tackle for years to come in Ereck Flowers. Flowers is just 20 years old, but is already one of the strongest young men in the draft. Expect the Giants to find a spot for him starting somewhere on that offensive line. New York didn’t take very long to make the selection as it seemed the pick was in as Roger Goodell was announcing the Atlanta Falcons pick before them.”- Pat Donovan

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“This is a bit of a surprise as well. I thought Andrus Peat was the pick here, but regardless the directive is clear in New York: protect Eli Manning and make it easier for him to get the ball down the field to Odell Beckham Jr. and Victor Cruz. Ereck Flowers is a monster meant to stonewall outside pass rushers and he’ll help the Giants balance the offense in the run game as well. With a single move, that offense just got much better.” – Devon Jeffreys

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“This is a fallback pick in every way.  The Giants obviously wanted Brandon Scherff and I find it hard to believe that they had Flowers rated ahead of La’el Collins before this weeks legal situation came up.  Definitely a team reaching for need instead of taking the best player available.”- Alex Hickey

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“Eli Manning was sacked 30 times in 2014, which is a major problem moving forward. The selection of Ereck Flowers should help in that department. The 6-foot-6, 329 pound guard started in all but one game at left tackle last year.”- Mark Gunnels

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“This is a classic Tom Coughlin pick as the Giants head coach has historically selected for need in the early rounds of the draft.  That worked out well for him last year with Offensive Rookie of the Year Odell Beckham Jr. and the hope is that if Eli Manning is upright the Giants offense will be explosive.  I believe that they could have traded down and still nabbed Flowers but the team was decisive.”- Charlie Bernstein